News

Europe Confirms Storage Aid on Cheese

08 September 2014

EUROPE - Private storage aid (PSA) for cheese and a public intervention period extension for Butter and Skimmed Milk Powder (SMP) were announced on Friday as part of a raft of measures to protect EU dairy prices following Russia’s import ban.

The options will see quantities of butter and SMP taken off the market for periods of 90 to 120 days (three to seven months) at a cost of $18.93 per tonne and €8.86 per tonne respectively.

Storage aid for 155,000 tonnes of a wide range of cheese for 60 to 210 days (two to seven months) at a cost of €15.57 per tonne for fixed storage costs and 40 cents per tonne for contractual storage.

Most ‘fresh’ cheeses are omitted, unsuitable for storage. Frozen curd is eligible.

This was accompanied by an extension of the public intervention period on butter and SMP, which will run until the end of the year, not the end of September.

Targeted export marketing support worth €30 million to assist in finding alternative markets to Russia has been secured for 2015.

UK dairy analysts say this could be worth considerably more.

“In addition to these short-term measures, the Commission has committed to providing an additional €30m for promotion programmes starting in 2015,” said levy board DairyCo.

“This is to support the need to create potential new sales outlets for products affected by the Russian ban. As these schemes are co-funded, this change is likely to mean an additional €60m for promotion measures.”

Outlining short term nature of PSA, a Commission source said: "One of the key points about Private Storage Aid is that it is very efficient in easing short-term market problems, but the operators are also aware that they have to cater for the products coming back onto the market at the end of the storage period."